El Matador has something of a Hitman or Splinter Cell
feel because of the gritty settings, the true-crime storyline where
you're trying to take down the heirs to Pablo Escobar single-handedly,
and the fact that just a few bursts of fire or a couple of well-placed
grenades can send you to back to Washington in a body bag. But this
isn't a tactical shooter or a sneaker. On the contrary, this is one of
the fastest, most traditional shooters seen in recent years. It has a
Doom-like pace (and soundtrack), a generic selection of weapons, and
tons of enemies that are waiting around every corner. If you slow down,
you'll get pinned down by withering fire and then killed by either the
barrage of lead directed your way or the grenades that are always
efficiently tossed into hiding spots

Although this sounds like a dream come true for an old-school shooter
fan, excruciating difficulty ruins El Matador. Those hordes of enemies
noted above never seem to miss, unerringly nailing you again and again
across rooms, hallways, and fields. If you stick Corbet's neck out even
the tiniest bit, you get shot in moments--even if the bad guy doing the
gold-medal shooting is hunkered down a few dozen meters away behind a
palm tree or a desk with nothing more than the top of his head exposed.
These shots come out of nowhere and drain you so regularly that your
health and armor might as well be ticking down on a clock.

A tough game is one thing, but El Matador tilts the playing field so
much that it feels like you're being cheated. While there is nothing in
gaming like the satisfaction of beating a really hard shooter, there is a
fine line between giving you the chance to earn that feeling of
accomplishment and hammering you so relentlessly that continuing to play
seems futile. If Plastic Reality ever makes another shooter, let's hope
that it discovers where that line is in the future.